The present invention relates to devices used in training toddlers to walk. More specifically, the present invention relates to a safety harness within which a toddler may be placed such that an adult supervisor may support the toddler's weight with handles extending from a belt portion of the harness while the toddler walks. The toddler may therefore walk without being required to support its entire weight. The adult supervisor may also steer the toddler in a supervisor preferred direction by manipulating the handles.
It is well known that infants learn to walk through a path of development comprising several stages. Initially, the infant may learn to stand while holding on to a supportive object. When the infant's coordination and strength increase, the infant may begin to walk along the supportive object while still holding on for support and balance. This is often referred to as “cruising.” During this cruising stage, adult supervisors often grasp the toddler's hands and assist with walking while pulling the toddler's arms above its head, in an effort to move the child away from the security of the supportive object.
This technique may inadvertently place stress on the toddler's limbs, particularly the wrists and shoulders, leading to potential injury. The injury potential is particularly true in the common instance of the child falling forward and being pulled upward into an upright position by the child's hands and arms.
Walk assisting devices are known in the art to help alleviate this problem. Many of these devices comprise harnesses in which the infant child may be placed and where the harness may be supported by an adult supervisor. The prior art harnesses are typically elaborate devices which include numerous straps and buckles, and work to varying levels of effectiveness. Although some prior art devices are effective in supporting a child, it has been found that none are effective in steering a child in a preferred direction.
The prior harnesses known typically comprise either a single support which the adult supervisor may grasp with one or both hands, or two supports that require both hands to operate. In the case of the single support devices, the single support is often flexible. It is therefore self-evident that the adult supervisor may not steer the child in a preferred direction as the flexible support is incapable of imparting a steering force into the harness. Even if the single support is rigid, it is difficult to provide the required steering force with one hand. In the prior art devices that utilize two supports, the supports either extend from a rear section of the harness or a front section of the harness, and not from areas adjacent the hips, such that pulling either support to a greater degree than the other will not influence the child to turn in a particular direction, but will pull the child straight back toward the adult operator.
The present invention has arisen to solve this problem by providing for a child support harness which permits the adult supervisor to steer the child in a particular direction in addition to at least partially supporting the child while learning to walk.